A suspicious man tried to lure an 8-year-old girl into his Sunday afternoon.

According to the Mt. Juliet Police Department, around 3 p.m. at the 200 block of Ridgeview Preserve Drive, the male, driving a gray, newer-model Chevrolet Malibu or Impala, talked to the little girl and requested that she get into the car. Her mother was nearby and yelled for the girl to get away from the man. As the man was leaving, the man yelled to the mother that her daughter did the “right thing”. The car had extra antennas mounted on the exterior and a dog kennel in the back seat area. The man also had a dog with him.

“At this time, we have no idea what the suspicious person’s intentions were,” stated Captain Michael Mullins. “It is certainly unusual for the suspicious person to allegedly act the way he did, and we want to ensure parents in our community are aware of his description.”

“Parents should always be aware of where their children are and teach them what to do around strangers,” stated Sergeant Tyler Chandler. “The mother in this incident was nearby and supervising her daughter. She noticed something did not seem right and immediately called the child to her.”

For information on child safety and prevention, visit the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s website at http://www.missingkids.com/safety.

Anyone with any information regarding this incident is encouraged to call the Mt. Juliet Police Department at (615) 754-2550. Information can also be given anonymously by calling (615) 754-TIPS (8477) or via the Mt. Juliet Police Department website at http://www.mjpd.org/ .